Family
Campylobacteraceae includes 2 genera, Campylobacter and
Arcobacter.
There are 18 species and subspecies within the genus Campylobacter, 11 of
which are considered pathogenic to humans, causing enteric and
extra-intestinal illnesses. The major pathogens are Campylobacter jejuni and
Campylobacter fetus. These pathogens are small,
curved, motile, microaerophilic, gram-negative rods. They vary
in width from 0.2-0.9 um and in length from 0.5-5.0 um. They
exhibit rapid, darting motility in corkscrew fashion by means of
a single flagellum or 2 flagella (monotrichous, amphitrichous).
They also possess a lipopolysaccharide endotoxin.

Campylobacteriosis is the infectious disease caused by bacteria
of the genus Campylobacter. Most people suffering from campylobacteriosis
develop diarrhea, cramping, abdominal pain, and fever within 2
to 5 days after exposure to the organism. The diarrhea may be
bloody and can be accompanied by nausea and vomiting. The
symptoms may last for one week. Some persons infected with Campylobacter,
however, may be asymptomatic. In persons with compromised immune
systems, Campylobacter
can occasionally spread to the bloodstream and causes a serious
life-threatening infection.

People who
get campylobacteriosis usually recover completely within 2 to 5
days, although sometimes recovery can take up to 10 days.
Although rare, long-term consequences sometimes result from Campylobacter
infection. Some people may have arthritis following
campylobacteriosis; others may develop a rare disease that
affects the nerves of the body beginning several weeks after the
diarrheal illness. This disease, called Guillain-Barré syndrome,
occurs when a person's immune system is "triggered" to attack
the body's own nerves, and can lead to paralysis that lasts
several weeks and usually requires intensive care. It is
estimated that approximately one in 1000 reported
campylobacteriosis cases leads to Guillain-Barré syndrome. As
many as 40% of Guillain-Barré syndrome cases in the United
States may be caused by campylobacteriosis.

In colonies
of nonhuman primates, recurring diarrhea is the leading cause of
animal morbidity requiring veterinary care (Elmore et al., 1992;
Munoz-Zanzi et al., 1999) and one of the leading causes for this
chronic enterocolitis is infection with Campylobacter
bacteria, especially C. coli
and C. jejuni (Sestak et al., 2003). Recently, Campylobacter
infection has also been linked to fetal death of Rhesus macaques
(Baze, and Bernacky, 2002). Because macaques can be asymptomatic
carriers and Campylobacter-induced
diarrhea is common, this finding has implications for breeding
success in nonhuman primate breeding colonies.

Although Campylobacter
bacteria isolation can be used to diagnose the bacterial
infection, a long incubation period is required to obtain
results. Furthermore, bacterial culture is not very sensitive
nor specific, and it increases the potential risk of laboratory
personnel contacting the bacteria. Subspecies identification by
culture can be difficult due to new variants. Campylobacter
detection by PCR is not only rapid, sensitive and specific, but
can also accurately subtype the bacteria.

Utilities:

Help confirm the disease causing agent

Shorten the time required to confirm a clinical
diagnosis of Campylobacter infection

Help ensure that animal colonies are free of Campylobacter
bacteria

Early prevention of spread of the bacteria among a
colony

Minimize personnel exposure to the bacteria

Safety monitoring of biological products and vaccines
that derive from primates

For specimen
types other than those listed here, please call to confirm
specimen acceptability and shipping instructions.

For all
specimen types, if there will be a delay in shipping, or during
very warm weather, refrigerate specimens until shipped and ship
with a cold pack unless more stringent shipping requirements are
specified. Frozen specimens should be shipped so as to remain
frozen in transit. See shipping
instructions for more information.